Pope visits a divided Ukraine

Posted: Sunday, June 24, 2001

By Victor L. SimpsonAssociated Press

KIEV, Ukraine -- Declaring ''I come in love,'' Pope John Paul II began a delicate visit Saturday to Ukraine, seeking to reconcile bitter divisions between his own flock and the dominant Orthodox church that have come to a head since the collapse of the Soviet Union.

But the leader of Ukraine's largest Orthodox church spurned his overtures, refusing to meet the pontiff at the airport or anywhere else.

Responding to frequent complaints from Moscow that the Vatican is seeking to extend its influence in traditional Orthodox Christian lands, John Paul said ''I have not come here with the intention of proselytizing.''

The frail 81-year-old pope flew from Rome following days of street demonstrations in Kiev and condemnations of the visit by the Moscow Patriarchate, which is the main Orthodox church in Ukraine and is affiliated with the Russian Orthodox Church.

''We hope that it (the visit) will not stop the improvement of our relationship. But that could happen,'' Russian Orthodox Patriarch Alexy II warned Saturday during a visit to neighboring Belarus.

Leaning on a cane for support, John Paul greeted political leaders and other dignitaries under a red canopy on the tarmac beside his Alitalia jetliner.

Orthodox church leaders asked that protesters cease their demonstrations during the pope's five-day visit. But no Orthodox leader greeted John Paul at the airport, and the leader of the Moscow Patriarchate flatly ruled out any meeting with the pope -- though it was unclear whether leaders of rival Ukrainian Orthodox churches would meet with the pontiff.

''If we embrace and give each other a brotherly kiss at a time when problems continue to exist and the people are suffering, it would look like a betrayal of Orthodoxy,'' Metropolitan Vladimir said in a documentary that was to be broadcast Saturday on Russia's RTR television.

John Paul immediately tried to set the tone for his visit, pleading for inter-church understanding and urging mutual forgiveness for ''wrongs endured'' by both Catholics and Orthodox.

''As a pilgrim of peace and brotherhood, I am sure that I shall be welcomed with friendship also by those who, although they are not Catholics, have hearts open to dialogue and cooperation,'' he said, speaking in fluent Ukrainian.

It was the first papal visit to Ukraine, although John Paul as a 19-year-old college student attended a military camp in what is now western Ukraine but was then part of his native Poland. Two early popes were deported to Crimea, part of modern Ukraine.

A small group of local residents stood on the tarmac with signs welcoming the pontiff, and children in colorful, embroidered folk costumes presented him with a bowl of Ukrainian soil and the traditional Slavic offering of bread and salt.

Ukrainian President Leonid Kuchma welcomed the pope, clasping his hands and holding him by the elbow as he walked slowly to the covered red podium in front of the airport terminal. After a morning of steady rain, the sun was shining brightly, bouncing off the marching military band's horns and the bayonets of the honor guard.

''Finally, with deep joy, I have been able to kiss the beloved soil of Ukraine. I thank God for the gift that he has given me today,'' the pope said.

The Vatican has called the trip to Ukraine a mission of ''peace and reconciliation,'' and John Paul is hoping it will help calm inter-church tensions and even pave the way for a pilgrimage to Russia -- like Ukraine, a predominantly Orthodox country.

Russian Orthodox Church leaders in Moscow, who also control the majority of Orthodox parishes in Ukraine, have rejected the pope's overtures to overcome the schism that has divided the main branches of Christianity for close to 1,000 years.

The situation is particularly acute in Ukraine, where Soviet dictator Josef Stalin persecuted followers of the Ukrainian Catholic church loyal to the pope, turning over its property to the Orthodox. Attempts by those Ukrainian Catholics, who number some 5 million, to regain their property have led to violence in some cases.

Representatives of the Moscow Patriarchate said they would boycott a meeting Sunday between the pope and leaders of Ukrainian churches. Vladimir, the head of the church, had reportedly left the city.

''We are sad there is no meeting possible with the Orthodox,'' Cardinal Walter Kasper, who heads the Vatican's office for relations with other Christians, told reporters traveling with John Paul.

John Paul is visiting Ukraine at the invitation of Kuchma, who apparently saw the trip as a way of advancing his nation's quest for acceptance in the West. Kuchma has been the focus of angry protests over alleged corruption and accusations of involvement in the killing of a critical journalist. He steadfastly rejected the accusations.

In an evening meeting in the ornate Mariyinsky Palace with Kuchma and other leaders, John Paul stressed Ukraine's Christian traditions and its suffering under the Nazis and communists. He said only tolerance will ensure Ukraine a ''particular place in the family of European peoples.''

The country of 50 million is fractured along religious lines. There are about 1 million Roman Catholics and 5 million Eastern Rite Catholics, also called Greek Catholics, who follow Orthodox ritual but bear allegiance to the pope. Two small Orthodox churches are vying with the Moscow Patriarchate for influence among Orthodox believers.

In addition to the two Masses outside Kiev, the pope was scheduled to visit a monument that commemorates the Nazis' killing of up to 200,000 Jews and others in the Babi Yar ravine in Kiev, and another massacre site, at Bykovnia, where the Soviet secret police slaughtered Ukrainians. He was also to beatify 28 Eastern Rite Catholics, most of them considered martyrs under the Nazis or communists.

On Monday, John Paul is to travel to the western Catholic stronghold of Lviv, where at least 1.5 million believers are expected to attend Mass.

This article published in the Athens Banner-Herald on Sunday, June 24, 2001.